In a prepared statement, OSDH Commissioner and Secretary of Health and Human Services, Terry Cline, MD, said, “We are in the unfortunate situation of having to eliminate programs, reduce services, regionalize statewide services and close county health department sites to meet the requirements of the revenue reduction.”
Hospital officials and state residents worry budget cuts will harm the ability of safety-net and nonprofit hospitals to continue providing uncompensated care to uninsured patients.
“Our [uncompensated care] fund, which covers folks who have no insurance, helps people access care who have absolutely no means…and now that fund has been eliminated,” Laura Dempsey-Polan, vice president of community advancement at Tulsa-based Morton Comprehensive Health Services, told KJRH.
Nonprofit hospitals, federally required to provide healthcare services to patients despite their ability to pay, worry budget cuts will force them to limit and deny certain services.
Around 600,000 Oklahoma residents are uninsured, according to the article.
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